Of Darkness and Light
by Vejova
Summary: A tale of human frustration, and the battle between Darkness and Light.  Slight AU setting. Eventual OC/CO. Rated-M; See full disclaimer inside. R&R.


****Author's Notes****

Story: _AU, eventual CO and OC, f/f, f/m. Mainly character driven. No main pairing. Possible spoilers._

_Rated **M** for, but not limited to, Sexuality, Language, Use of Alcohol, Violence, Intellectual-level Humor, and adult concepts. _

_Parental guidance is DILLIGAF. Laser guidance is optional. __Legalese is at the end._

This was meant as a prologue; something to whet your appetite, but it turned into *gasp***** _plot._

Admittedly, my writing style is difficult to "speed-read", and this is partly intentional.

This story is a project of love and devotion, not a quickie :P

(Fair warning... I like innuendo and metaphor.) Rated **M** for a reason.

Characters will not be introduced in the standard _meta-knowledge_ way their first time around.

Enjoy and Review.

****End****

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><p><strong>~~~Chapter One: Into the Darkness~~~<strong>

_Darkness..._

_So warm... Like a mother's embrace..._

_The familiar scent of hair..._

_The lilting hum of a tune, lost in the ebb and flow of time, yet timeless still..._

_Words without meanings, sonorous, and whose meaning is beyond the realm of words..._

_Always without warning, she screams as the warmth is ripped away again..._

* * *

><p>The woman bolts upright... or is it upside down?<p>

Disorientation and vertigo reign, as the darkness surrounds her; smothers her.

Only the mechanical, apoplectic wail nearby cuts through the night.

_"Was the cry not her own?"_, she questions only to the ache in her throat.

Shifting merely brings the darkness more tightly to embrace her, wet, heavy, and unforgiving.

A cry of frustration this time, as she struggles to be free, to breathe.

Valiantly, a single arm escapes its prison and lashes out at the nearby offender.

Cold steel sends a jolt through slick, burning flesh, and it's cacophony dies in an instant.

The melodic _tick tick tick _picks up where it left off, heedless of the personal war that was waged, now battling against only the pounding of a fractured heart.

* * *

><p>Ragged, sultry breaths fight to bring air in and out of her heaving chest.<p>

Sweat and hair mingle against her face and neck in an orgy of chaos.

Trembling fingers slowly begin to free her from the silken serpent embrace.

One by one, muscles tense and contract, fighting to part damp flesh from its cocoon.

Finally, with one final thrust, she is freed from her second skin.

Sliding forth into the darkness, the humid night air does nothing to appease her burning flesh, or steady her racing mind.

A shiver lights up her spine, as fingers and nails are raked through the mess of hair, along scalp and skin.

The taste of salt greets her tongue through parted lips.

Unsteady legs protest and carry her the few feet to her window...

* * *

><p><em>No... Not hers anymore. Not after today.<em>

What is this she is feeling?

Sadness? Regret?

No. This is what she desired, more than anything.

Her decision. She chose to accept this.

That was it...

One last ragged breath, and her cool, intellectual armor began to slide back into place.

Trembling muscles calmed, eyes focused, breath evened.

* * *

><p>The stars... So many tonight...<p>

_This morning,_ her internal monologue corrected. Possibly the last she would see from here.

A gentle breeze, like airy lover's fingers, broke her from her mental chatter.

Reminded her of her own nakedness.

Eyes traveled south...

Sweat glistened like diamonds in the starlight.

Breath caught in her throat, surprised by her own alien beauty.

Fascination, as rivulets of silver arced across porcelain skin, forming constellations never known to the night sky.

Ones soon to be lost to the world forever.

An elegant finger of its own volition, slowly tracing the path of a fallen star...

Nerves tingle, feeling soft flesh turn supple in its wake...

* * *

><p><em>Pain. Agony.<em>

Her heart rockets against its cage in protest, as she's brought crashing back...

Her mind reeling, trying to comprehend...

Her phone.

Rage flooded her veins.

She would _kill_ whomever dared to...

* * *

><p>"<em>...My Child... Are you awake?<em>", purred a cold, sensuous voice.

"_Haa..._" Her lungs betrayed her. Fury froze over in an instant.

_"Mmm... remember... Today is your big day... my little Star._

_Today is the day you are to take my place..."_

A moment of ominous silence passes.

_"See you soon, my Child..."_

Suddenly it was too dark.

Diamonds felt like frost on her skin.

The cell phone bounced off the carpet, it past offense forgotten, as she sprinted into the bathroom.

* * *

><p>The flick of a switch, and blinding lights greeted the oncoming train wreck in her mirror.<p>

_Ugh... What happened to that glittering Goddess?_

A cursory inspection revealed nothing quite monsterous, nothing beyond her power to fix.

Blood trickled from a small cut on her breast...

Her finger traced its previous path, straight to the mark...

Wait...

Where the hell were her clothes?

* * *

><p>Hot water to melt away the ache and filth.<p>

A glittering razor to carve out her vanity.

Soaps and lotions of soft scents to calm her nerves.

Slowly, she found comfort in routine.

Found strength in what was _hers._

* * *

><p>Black lace over alabaster curves.<p>

Curves that her regal SEED uniform could no longer hide.

Soft touches of make up, subtle in their perfection.

Radiant, golden hair, pulled up tightly in back.

Chic glasses perched atop a cute nose.

Ice blue eyes, cold and collected.

A slight smirk spread across pink rosebud lips.

Lips that she couldn't help but run a tongue across...

.

The mask was complete.

.

_"Called a star's orbit to persue... What's the darkness, Star, to you..?", _mused Quistis.

.

.

***~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ f i n . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~***

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><p><strong>***End Ch.1***<strong>

Next chapter will come when I'm good and ready for it to.

The first few chapters are already written.

I'll type them up and give it to you at my leisure, probably depending on your responses.

(P.S. The spacing and formatting on this website are **really** pissing me off. Bear with me... RAWR)

.

*****Legal*****

All characters and trademarks copyright of their respective owners.

All original content and this story are mine.

Do not distribute.

End quote by Nietzsche. He's dead, Jim.

Second end quote by Leonard McCoy. He's dead too...


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